Nike has designed tailor-made shoes for doctors and nurses
If you really think about it, working at a hospital is sort of a sport in itself, with workers walking up to 5 miles during a typical 12-hour shift and only sitting for less than one hour--all while saving lives. For that reason, Nike has created tailor-made shoes just for the hard-working Read More...
This coating helps toilets save water by making poop basically flush itself
In a single day, more than 141 billion liters of water is used to flush toilets—and even in places prone to drought, it’s typically clean drinking water. What if you didn’t have to use as much water to flush what you put in them? Don’t be squeamish: New tech from researchers at Penn State Read More...
Two of America’s biggest coal plants are closing this month
Coal is still America’s third most important energy source, but that won’t last long as two of America’s biggest coal plants are set to cease operations this month. The reason? Slowing electricity demand for coal, climate regulations, and consumers having cheaper alternatives for Read More...
New treatment could help prevent food allergies
Food allergies are quite prevalent - about 32 million Americans suffer from some kind of food allergy. Our current approach at reducing the effects of allergies is through a slow exposure of the allergen in a process called oral immunotherapy. During this procedure, patients are given their Read More...
The Netherlands is on a mission to get back its starry nights
If you’ve never been to the Netherlands, the color of the night sky can come as a bit of a shock when you see it for the first time. In many places, it’s a hazy, bright orange color, the result of all the lights being used within cities and for the country’s vast amount of indoor farms. This Read More...
Superconductors are about to make wind turbines ultra-efficient
Wind turbines are set to become a whole lot better at turning wind into energy after a team of Danish scientists tested a superconducting rotor on a turbine. So, you might be asking: what on Earth is a superconductor and how does it improve wind turbines? A superconductor is a material capable Read More...
These speedy robots are helping America tackle the recycling crisis
Since humans aren’t the best at sorting out all the different types of waste we produce, recycling centers around the country are adopting robots that use artificial intelligence to do the sorting job better. In Florida, for example, a sprawling recycling factory has 14 different robots that Read More...
There is a giant alternative climate conference taking place in the Amazon
Major organizations such as the UN may have lofty ambitions to change the world, but that doesn’t mean they’re necessarily successful in representing the desires of the people when implementing action. Many people outside these transnational organizations believe not enough is being done to Read More...
What Finland’s amazing new library can teach us about valuing public amenities
In a country that boasts one of the world’s highest literacy rates, the arrival of the new central library in the capital of Finland last year was a kind of moon-landing-like moment of national bonding. The €98 million facilities, whose opening in December 2018 marked the centenary of Finnish Read More...
The world finally has a vaccine for Ebola
Ebola is a deadly virus, one that has been plaguing the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) this past year. The virus has killed some 2,000 people since it broke out last year and threatens to kill many more if the outbreak isn’t quelled. The good news is that for the first time ever, a Read More...